Same-day hearings set in Lake County sheriff's suits against DA, BOS

LAKE COUNTY -- May 7 is shaping up to be a busy day for Sheriff Frank Rivero and his lawyers.

That afternoon, different visiting judges are set to appear at the Lake County Courthouse to preside over motion hearings regarding the sheriff's separate lawsuits against District Attorney Don Anderson and the Board of Supervisors (BOS).

Both civil cases have deep ties to the DA's mid-February determination that Rivero lied after a 2008 on-duty incident during which then-deputy Rivero shot at, but did not hit, a suspect.

Rivero, who denies the untruthfulness allegation, filed a lawsuit challenging Anderson's inquiry and finding in March, but some supervisors subsequently said they don't think the county government is required to foot the bill for the sheriff's legal counsel in his case against the DA.

The sheriff successfully sued the BOS for county-funded independent counsel last summer, when the DA was actively investigating Rivero's actions after the 2008 shooting.

However, while staring at a $29,600 legal bill in mid-March in the wake of Rivero's lawsuit against Anderson, the BOS asked county staff to begin proceedings to inquire whether the court order requiring the county to pay for the sheriff's outside attorney is still in effect now that Anderson made his final determination.

The County Counsel's Office filed a motion March 15 asking assigned Judge Richard J. Henderson to clarify the scope of his Aug. 27 ruling regarding the sheriff's lawyer.

Henderson is currently scheduled to hear arguments on the clarification motion at the Lakeport courthouse May 7 at 3 p.m. -- an hour and 30 minutes after the DA and sheriff are due in court for their pending case.

Rivero lost the initial court battles in his suit against Anderson March 4 when assigned Judge William P. Lamb denied his requests for a temporary restraining order against the DA and for all documents in the case to be sealed.

Anderson responded by filing motions earlier this month asking the court to strike Rivero's entire civil complaint, throw out all of the sheriff's main arguments and issue sanctions against Rivero and his attorney.

The sheriff's lawyers and the DA are currently set to debate those issues in front of Lamb May 7 at 1:30 p.m.

In light of his inquiry into the 2008 shooting, Anderson has designated Rivero as the type of officer who has a history of untruthfulness in official matters -- information that could be used to attack the sheriff's credibility when he testifies as a law-enforcement witness.

Since the DA's finding was made public after Lamb's March 4 decisions, Rivero became the target of a recall effort, received a vote of no confidence from the BOS and refused the supervisors' request for his resignation.

Jeremy Walsh is a staff reporter for Lake County Publishing. Reach him at 263-5636, ext. 37 or jwalsh@record-bee.com. Follow his court coverage on Twitter, @JeremyDWalsh or #Rivero.